Controversies
Did Supreme Court Create New Anti-Union Law?
Organized labor and some constitutional scholars reacted angrily to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last week that could impact unions’ ability to raise money from non-union members.
In some states, such as California, public sector unions can col... read more
University Researchers Hack into Active Drones
The federal government’s plan to allow potentially thousands of drones to fly through U.S. airspace in the coming years could result in disaster, unless a “gaping hole” in the unmanned aircraft’s navigation system is corrected.
A team of res... read more
Deputy Who Arrested Mel Gibson to be Fired
Six years after Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Deputy James Mee arrested actor Mel Gibson on a drunk driving charge, endured an anti-Semitic rant by the star, clashed with his superiors over removal of the rant from the arrest report, d... read more
Coast Guard Protects Oil Drilling Ships from Environmentalists
The U.S. Coast Guard has come to the rescue of oil companies planning to drill off the coast of Alaska by declaring environmentalists must stay away from company ships.
As 19 Arctic oil-drilling ships head through Puget Sound, groups like Gr... read more
DEA Chief’s Bizarre Defense of Marijuana Prohibition
The Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) top official has come under considerable scrutiny for recent remarks defending the illegality of marijuana.
During her testimony before Congress, DEA Director Michele Leonhart argued that keeping m... read more
Tombstone Sues Forest Service over Access to Damaged Water Pipeline
With its water supplies dwindling, the legendary Wild West town of Tombstone, Arizona (population 1,562), is suing the federal government over refusing to allow local residents to use heavy equipment to repair a pipeline that runs through protec... read more
Supreme Court to Take Case of Federal Government Suing Georgia over Hospital Monopoly
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to consider an appeal from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which has been stymied in its attempts to challenge a hospital merger in Georgia.
Phoebe Putney Health System announced in 2010 that it would me... read more
Military Judge Orders Obama Administration to Turn over Proof that WikiLeaks Documents Damaged National Security
If the Obama administration wants Private Bradley Manning convicted for releasing classified documents to WikiLeaks, federal prosecutors first must disclose proof that the soldier’s action did harm to national security.
This week Col. Denise... read more
Media Coverage of Obama Health Care Act: Emphasizing the Negative
Regardless of how the U.S. Supreme Court rules on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act, the Obama administration’s federal healthcare reform law, most Americans probably assume the lower courts have decided against the controversial ... read more
Justice Scalia Contradicts Himself on Immigration to Get the Result He Wants
Yesterday’s Supreme Court decision in the case of Arizona v. United States, which struck down three key provisions in Arizona’s immigration enforcement statute known as S.B. 1070 for conflicting with federal immigration law and policy, provoked ... read more
U.S. High Court Rules It’s Not Their Cross to Bear . . . for Now
A towering cross on federal property atop Mount Soledad in San Diego may have to come down after the U.S. Supreme Court decided to let stand without comment an appeals court ruling that the memorial illegally conveys a religious message. But it ... read more
U.S. Companies Have Dumped 30 Trillion Gallons of Toxic Liquids into the Earth…Are They Coming Back to Haunt Us?
The water Americans drink is threatened from below. For the past half-century or so, U.S. corporations have injected more than 30 trillion gallons of toxic liquid waste deep into the earth, believing that multiple layers of rock would prevent th... read more
Is the Roberts Supreme Court in the Pocket of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce?
Although during his 2005 confirmation hearing Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts tried to reassure the Senate that he would be unbiased because “Judges are like umpires,” he and his fellow Republican justices seem to have a strike zone tha... read more
Same-Sex Couple Sues Blue Cross and Catholic Hospital
Two unnamed women are suing Blue Cross and St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Westchester County in New York state over the Catholic hospital’s refusal to grant benefits to same-sex couples. One of the women is an employee of the hospital.
The l... read more
Tax-Exempt Churches Plan to Engage in Illegal Electioneering
On October 7, 2012, hundreds of conservative political activists will intentionally violate federal law by engaging in illegal electioneering despite the presence of a law on the books since 1954 that forbids them to do so. They believe, apparen... read more
NFL Players Sue League and Helmet Maker over Hidden Brain Injury Test Results
Facing a potentially costly class-action lawsuit, the National Football League stands accused of hiding the dangers of head injuries and long-term health problems associated with them.
More than 2,000 former players are giving up their indiv... read more